as in bought
made beforehand in large numbers she chose to have her computer designed to her specifications rather than buying an off-the-shelf machine

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of off-the-shelf Moreover, it could be implemented very inexpensively because off-the-shelf identity verification solutions were common in the private sector. Jon Coupal, Orange County Register, 23 Feb. 2025 DoD brass blocked it from using off-the-shelf commercial satellites, as originally envisioned, over worries about relying on private-sector companies that could fail or change their business strategies. Jeremy Bogaisky, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2025 Other research teams, including scientists at MD Anderson, are working on off-the-shelf mRNA vaccines for pancreatic cancer, meaning the vaccines have a target that is common in all pancreatic cancer tumors, rather than a personalized target based on a person’s individual tumor. Kaitlin Sullivan, NBC News, 19 Feb. 2025 Because virtually no mainstream economists think that universal tariffs are a good idea, there is no off-the-shelf policy model to adopt. Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker, 23 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for off-the-shelf

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“Off-the-shelf.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/off-the-shelf. Accessed 22 Mar. 2025.

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